Library Updates

Things are going well at the library! We signed up a few students that come on a regular basis and a lot of the construction has been finished. Glass windows were added and two front doors were re-made. Still waiting on the grates to be finished so the books can permanently live in the library but for now it’s working as is. Based on everyone’s schedule, we have one hour tutoring session twice a week: once in the morning and another in the afternoon. On Thursdays and some Saturdays, we play games and do activities with the kids for one hour. There are a few mats in the library that we bring outside to sit in the shade since there’s not a lot of room inside the building.

On a typical tutoring day, students wash their hands outside, choose a book, and sit with the book for twenty minutes. During that time, some of the facilitators are sitting with the kids to help them with the books while others prepare lessons. After that, the facilitators teach a class. Usually they will choose a specific letter, a key word with that letter, and have the child practice writing it (first in the air and then on the chalkboard). Then, they sing the alphabet song and listen while another facilitator reads a book in Portuguese.

Volunteers sitting with the children during Reading Time.

A volunteer teaching the letter “I” using a the key word “igreja” or church. We usually have a large audience that hangs out outside the window as well.

Children watching as a child uses the pointer stick to identify the letters “I” in the alphabet.

Outside lessons.

An almost complete panoramic shot of the library if you are standing in the doorway. The door to the left leads into the volunteer’s room (their pictures are on the front) and the banana capalana (sarong) covers a storage room to the right.

Being at the library brings back tons of memories from when I used to go to the library in Quartz Hill. We’re hoping the community provides someone to work permanently and full time at the library so it will be sustainable. We don’t want it to close when we leave. However, no one has volunteered for the position so as of now we’re hoping the next Peace Corps volunteers will want to continue with the library. I think the volunteers themselves will continue. They’re getting lots of experience and most of them want to be teachers. Couldn’t be more proud :)